Music Hub
Advertisement

Template:Redirect

(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right
{{{Type}}} by Luther Ingram
Released April 1972
Genre(s) Soul
Length 3:32
Label(s) KoKo Records
Songwriter(s) Homer Banks, Carl Hampton, Raymond Jackson
Producer(s) John Baylor
(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right
by Millie Jackson
Album Caught Up
Released 1974
Genre(s) Soul
Songwriter(s) Homer Banks, Carl Hampton, Raymond Jackson
Producer(s) Brad Shapiro
(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right
{{{Type}}} by Barbara Mandrell
Album Moods
Released February 17, 1979
Genre(s) Country
Length 3:05
Label(s) ABC
Songwriter(s) Homer Banks, Carl Hampton, Raymond Jackson
Producer(s) Tom Collins

"(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right" is a song written by Stax Records songwriters Homer Banks, Carl Hampton and Raymond Jackson. Originally written for The Emotions, it has been performed by many singers, most notably by Luther Ingram, whose original recorded version[1] topped the R&B chart for four weeks and rose to number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1972.[2] Billboard ranked it as the No. 16 song for 1972.[3]

In 1972/73, The Faces recorded the song as an outtake for Ooh La La, their final studio album. In 1974, Millie Jackson released her version of the song which received two Grammy Award nominations,[4][5] and in 1978 Barbara Mandrell's version topped the U.S. country singles charts and reached number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rod Stewart re-recorded the song for Foot Loose & Fancy Free, his eighth album; released as a single it peaked at #23 in the UK singles chart in 1980.

The song[]

The song is about an adulterous love affair, told from the point of view of either the mistress or the cheating spouse, depending on the gender of the performer. Regardless, both parties involved express their desire to maintain the affair, while at the same time acknowledging that the relationship is wrong according to conventional moral standards.

Millie Jackson, however, took a somewhat different approach. On both studio and live recordings, her version is typically divided into three parts: "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right," "The Rap," and "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right (Reprise)," which together have a running time of over 11 minutes.[6] The first and third parts include the song more or less as originally written, while the second part was written by Jackson herself. Titled "The Rap," the middle segment is a monologue in which an unrepentant Jackson discusses her status as the "other woman" and why she loves it.[7]

Notable performers[]

Although it was first recorded by The Emotions and Veda Brown, those recordings were never released. Other notable singers to cover it include country singer Jackie Burns (whose version made the Hot Country Songs chart in 1972),[8] Isaac Hayes, Millie Jackson, Rod Stewart, Percy Sledge, Bobby "Blue" Bland, David Ruffin, LeAnn Rimes, Renée Geyer, Ramsey Lewis, reggae singer Alton Ellis, Tom Jones, Cassandra Wilson, Nathan Cavaleri, Rania Zeriri and Johanne Desforges (French cover : Si je ne peux t'aimer a quoi bon exister).

Chart recordings[]

Luther Ingram[]

Chart (1972) Peak
Position
Template:Singlechart
Template:Singlechart

Jackie Burns[]

Chart (1972) Peak
Position
US Billboard Hot Country Singles[8] 71

Millie Jackson[]

Chart (1975) Peak
Position
Template:Singlechart
Template:Singlechart

Barbara Mandrell[]

Chart (1979) Peak
Position
Template:Singlechart
Template:Singlechart

Rhonda Clark[]

Chart (1992) Peak
Position
Template:Singlechart

References[]

  1. "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Want to Be Right)", SecondhandSongs.com. Retrieved 13 March 2017
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 274.
  3. Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972
  4. Millie Jackson. MTV Artists. Retrieved on April 16, 2015.
  5. Patrick Mondout. Super 70s.com - Grammy Awards for 1974. Retrieved on December 31, 2008.
  6. Amazon.com: MILLIE JACKSON: Caught Up / Still Caught Up: Music. Retrieved on April 16, 2015.
  7. Catching Up with Soul Icon Millie Jackson. NPR.org (19 May 2006). Retrieved on April 16, 2015.
  8. 8.0 8.1 Joel Whitburn, Top Country Singles 1944-1993, p.488

External links[]

Template:S-start Template:Succession box Template:Succession box Template:Succession box Template:S-end

Template:Millie Jackson Template:Rod Stewart songs Template:Renée Geyer Template:Barbara Mandrell

Advertisement